Sometimes I have a second to step back and think about what comes out of people’s mouths when I ask, “Anything else?” I’m on family medicine in Bucks County right now, and I’m seeing the full gamut, and I’m simply floored by some of of what these patients reveal during the “ordinary check-up.” At the end of the day, my head feels flooded by information these folks have likely never told their family, their best friends, their spouses.
This week I had an otherwise healthy patient with no previous health issues come in for a relatively innocuous concern, for which we able to quickly put his mind at easy.
Me: Is there anything else you wanted to discuss today?
Him: Well, actually…my three greatest concerns are as follows…
And that’s how my 7-minute appointment turned into 45, including a full neuro exam, EKG, and bloodwork.
anna in med school 
great post. i had that happen almost daily when i was on family medicine last year. and it always seemed to happen right around 4:45 PM….
thanks so much! yeah, i think that might be one of my favorite parts about family medicine, though it probably also depends on the location. where was your practice??
it was run outside of a large, urban center. lots of quick post-prandial abdominal pain turned into well, yeah, maybe some chest pain and that lead to felling warm and that turned into some morning headache and oh i’m a little dizzy too. and it’s both room spinning and feeling like i’m going to pass out. and don’t let me forget about that pesky disease i googled last night on WebMD that I am CONVINCED I have…
right of passage?
right of passage, exactly! i think each at least 50% of my patients tell me about chest pain right as they’re walking out the door…lllllllll